This is the 3rd installment of my Penang Hawker Food series. And in this article, we move on to a small little hidden coffee shop (although the sign says ‘cafe) along Penang Road … right next to the tallest building on the island of Penang, the Komtar. There’s quite a few popular food eateries around this area but the locals will know Joo Hooi Cafe.

Walking into Joo Hooi Cafe makes you feel like being transported back in time, to the era of the early 19th century. Cute, wooden cubicle seats … you never get those nowadays. Old adverts decorated the walls of the cafe and the ambiance is magnified by background oldies music of the 70’s ….

Like many other good ol’ coffee shops in Penang, you can find practically most of common local favourites in Joo Hooi Cafe. Char Kuay Teow, Assam Laksa, Rojak and Cendol are some of the choices you don’t want to miss. And if you ask me … I’d say most of them are equally as good, if not the best. After all, this place comes highly recommended by Ho Chak (a popular local “Food Hunt” TV pogram) and is listed in the “Penang Food Guide”.

There are mixed opinions about the popularity of the food choices here … for instance, the char kuay teow, Arguably, some say the best char kuay teow in Penang is by the Two Sisters over at Lorong Selamat, or even Ah Leng at Jalan Datuk Keramat. Well, I find the Char Kuay Teow is not too bad either. (Hmm … I never did find out what is the chef’s name). Good kuay teow texture and of course, you can’t miss the giant prawns … which is practically “in your face” when they serve it to you.

Another dish that comes highly recommended is the Assam Laksa. Although I am not a Assam Laksa fan, I find the ones they have here very appetizing. It’s thick rice noodles with sour tamarind sauce; a sprinkle of onion and not forgetting pineapples. That will definitely make you salivate … can you imagine having a hot bowl of Assam Laksa in front of you now?

Finally, the one item you musn’t leave without trying is the cendol. Especially after traveling around the Penang town on a hot, sunny day … nothing beats slurping those crushed ice down your throat. And munch on cendol jelly and the kidney beans. I usually like cendol that oozes with thick, gooey gula melaka (but musn’t be too sweet) on finely shaved ice with strands of green jelly-like cendol.

There you go …. a good run down on what’s available in Joo Hooi Cafe. Besides these, there are others that I’ve not written about such as Prawn Mee, Loh Bak and also Rojak. Check out the location map and address below ….

Joo Hooi Café
475 Jalan Penang
Penang, Malaysia

Strange but true. And I always thought I’ve been writing a lot but sadly no. Anyway, here’s my continuation on the Penang series and let’s hope my next 100 post would be much …. faster.

Penangites find good food in many places usually unknown (and even odd) to tourists. It’s best to check with your local tour guide, if you have one. If you can’t find any, there’s always your friendly neighborhood food bloggers. Just google and you’ll have a whole gastronomic itinerary listed out for you.

Don’t be surprised to find some stalls that are set up beside a busy road are considered to serve very good food by the locals. Don’t worry about cleanliness as most of these outlets are clean, unless proven otherwise. The most important thing is to be adventurous with your tongue and to look at the condition of the stall and its surroundings. If there is a water tap nearby and if the food is served hot, you should not be worried.

Lorong Selamat is one of such. It’s located between Jalan Burma and Jalan Macallister, 2 of Penang’s busiest’s street. Along this street, you will find some of Penang’s favorite top bites such as the Penang Char Kuay Teow (fried flat noodle). Scout along the street and you will also find good Prawn Mee (locally known as Hokkien Mee or Noodle), Assam Laksa (this noodle soup comes with sour broth flavored with tamarind and has ingredients such as pureed fish, fruits, veggies and a generous helping of chili. The combination are powerful and will have the uninitiated breathing fire) and also O-Chian (Fried Oyster or Oyster Omelets).

Do be careful when you order your food : Penang laksa or hokkien mee are quite different from what you’d get in, say, Kuala Lumpur. There are two types of Hokkien mee: Hokkien hae mee and Hokkien char mee. Hokkien hae mee (Hokkien prawn noodles) is commonly served in Penang and Singapore while Hokkien char mee (Hokkien fried noodles) is commonly served in Kuala Lumpur and the Klang Valley. The dish commonly referred to as “Hokkien mee”, depending on the locality, can mean either Hokkien hae mee or Hokkien char mee. For example, Hokkien mee in Kuala Lumpur refers to Hokkien char mee and vice versa. So if your order arrives different from what you expected, better check again before complaining.

Here’s the location map to Lorong Selamat.

Colloquially known as “The Pearl of the Orient” the name “Penang” comes from the modern Malay name Pulau Pinang, which means island of the betel nut tree. Although Penang is a popular spot for tourism, it’s the gastronomic journey that you should be participating in. And since dining experience is what I love doing, I might as well do my part and share about Penang food, as would the rest of the foodies.

This is just the beginning of a long series of my postings, of Penang and Ipoh food.. To start it off, here’s something on the hawker fares along the New Lane street … just opposite Sunway Hotel Georgetown, Penang.

As usual, most popular food streets in Penang offers plenty of delicious and cheap Malaysian food. New Lane sports countless food stalls, almost a veritable “food paradise” but not all of them are as good. Well, according to popular sources and tips from various fellow foodies, there are few stalls which is famed for some specialties.

Loh Bak – Munchy and crispy to the last bit.
Popiah – Ask the vegetarian version !
Satay – When you’re in Penang, go for pork satay …
Cockels – You can never get enough of the slimy, bloody …. delicious “see-ham”!
Porridge – Ever tried one with pig “spare-parts”?

Instead of writing, I’ll let the pictures below paint the words for you.

And here’s the map if you ever get lost in Georgetown, Penang (very unlikely).

Here are what the others wrote about New Lane.

VKeong
Penangfaces
RasaMalaysia
Motormouth From Ipoh

You can also check out a video feature about this place by Alexlcc here.